RAVE! Robust Academic Vocabulary Encounters!
GLOSSARY (sample)
Grade 6
academic
Something is academic if it has to do with studying and school subjects like reading, math,
science, and social studies.
access
If you have access to something, you are able to get it or use it.
acknowledge
If you acknowledge something, you accept that it is true or that it exists.
acquire
If you acquire something, you get it and it becomes yours.
adapt
If you adapt, you change your ideas or behavior in order to deal with a new situation successfully.
ambiguous
If something is ambiguous, its meaning is not clear because it can be understood in more than
one way.
anticipate
If you anticipate something, you think about it ahead of time to get ready for it or to look
forward to it.
assume
If you assume something, you form an opinion without really knowing the facts.
benefit
When you benefit from something, you get something good from it, and it is helpful to you.
bias
A bias is a strong feeling for or against a type of person or thing that can lead to unfair treatment.
compatible
When people or things are compatible, they work well together and get along with each other.
compensate
When you compensate for something that is needed or missing, you make up for it by
providing something to take the place of it.
RAVE! Glossary
© 2011 University of Pittsburgh
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confine
If you confine a person or thing, you limit what they can do and where they can go.
conform
If you conform, you do what everyone in that situation is expected to do.
consent
If you consent to something, you agree to it or give permission for it to happen.
consequences
Consequences are the effects of people’s actions or decisions.
consult
If you consult with someone, you ask for their advice, information, or opinion about something.
contradict
If you contradict someone or something, you show that you disagree by saying or doing the
opposite.
controversy
A controversy is a strong disagreement about something that often involves a lot of discussion and
angry feelings.
criteria
Criteria are the list of requirements you use to make a decision or a judgment about something.
derive
When a thing, idea, or feeling is derived, it comes from or is developed from something else.
diminish
When something is diminished, there is less of it.
dominant
When someone or something is dominant, it is the strongest, most powerful, and most important.
empirical
If something is empirical, it is based on what can be observed and measured, not just your
thoughts about it.
exceed
Something that exceeds goes beyond what is allowed or expected.
extract
When you extract something, you take it out or pull it out of something else.
foundation
A foundation provides support on which something else can be built.
RAVE! Glossary
© 2011 University of Pittsburgh
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function
The function of something or someone is what they are supposed to do, their purpose.
implement
If you implement something, like a plan, idea, or program, you put it into action.
incentive
An incentive is something that someone offers you to convince you to act a certain way or do a
certain thing.
inherent
An inherent part of something is a natural, built-in part of it.
initiative
When someone takes the initiative or starts an initiative, they take action to solve a problem,
to help someone, or to achieve a goal.
innovative
Someone or something is innovative when they do things in a new and creative way.
integral
If something is integral to something else, it is a necessary part of it.
interact
When people interact, they talk with each other or do things with each other.
manipulate
If you manipulate someone or something, you work on them to get what you want, often in a
tricky way.
mutual
Something is mutual if people have the same thoughts or feelings about it.
obtain
If you want something and you obtain it, it means you were able to get it.
outcome
The outcome of something is how it turns out at the end.
perceive
If you perceive something, you sense it or become aware of it and begin to think about it in a
certain way.
perspective
A perspective is a particular way of thinking about or viewing something.
potential
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If someone or something has potential, it has the possibility of developing or happening in the
future.
priority
A priority is something so important that it comes first before anything else.
rational
When people are being rational, they are thinking clearly, not emotionally, in an organized way
that is based on facts.
restrict
If you restrict something, you limit it to control it from becoming too big or too difficult.
retain
If you retain something, you hold onto it and continue to use it or remember it.
rigid
If someone or something is rigid, they do not change or bend easily.
significant
Something significant is large enough or important enough to make a real difference.
suspend
If you suspend something, you stop it for a while or leave it hanging until a decision is made
about it.
sustain
If you sustain something, you help to keep it going.
symbolic
When something is symbolic, it stands for or represents something else, even if it does not look
like that other thing.
transfer
If something is transferred, it is moved or passed along from one place to another.
undertake
When you undertake a task or a challenge, you decide to take it on and do it.
unify
If people or things unify, they come together as one thing or one group.
unique
Something that is unique is the only one of its kind.
virtual
Something virtual is so close to being real or being true that it seems real or true.
RAVE! Glossary
© 2011 University of Pittsburgh
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